Diabetes Can Be Reversed Naturally

Diabetes, like all lifestyle diseases, is a degenerative condition that will only worsen if not addressed. But the good news is that diabetes can be put in reverse gear in as little as 21-days! Pills and insulin injections are not the answer. A conscious shift in choosing what goes into your mouth is

"Ditch the mangoes" and "switch to artificial sweeteners" - is the dreaded advice handed out to diabetics and pre-diabetics when first diagnosed. But did you know that the real villain here is - Fat and not carbs? In this week's column, we uncover how the advent of cutting-edge MRI techniques has helped solve this mystery and why diabetes is both preventable and reversible naturally.

Don't Shoot the Messenger All type 2 diabetics understand that their bodies are 'insulin-resistant' or non-cooperative towards helping insulin do its job of managing spikes in blood sugar after each meal. Sadly, what most doctors and diabetics don't understand is - why.

Insulin is a hormone which, like all hormones, works as a messenger-boy in the internal communications department of our body corporate. Its job is to persuade the muscles department to use up as much of the blood sugar supply as possible. Given their large size and heavy energy needs, muscles are naturally the largest consumers of blood sugar. As per policy, insulin must first obtain an entry-pass from 'insulin-receptors' who sit at the reception desk outside the muscle department. Most times, insulin-receptors are pretty accommodating and swing open the gateways for insulin to offload its blood sugar cargo inside the muscle.

However, there are times when insulin-receptors are less welcoming. This happens when the receptors are too busy firefighting a gatecrasher - FAT - specifically, intramyocellular lipids or small droplets of fat in the blood that bulldoze their way into the muscle department without permission.

A FAT Chance of Success You have to admit, it's a thankless job for insulin, made even tougher by interference from FAT - who jams up the communication lines between insulin and insulin-receptors and in doing so, blocks the uptake of sugar by the muscles. As muscles become increasingly unreceptive to insulin's charms, it heralds the beginnings of "insulin resistance". As blood sugar levels continue to rise, a vicious cycle of disease and weight gain starts as insulin levels remain elevated throughout the day (regardless of food intake) - all thanks to FAT!

It does not matter whether this FAT comes from the foods we eat or spills out from the fat cells we carry. In fact, most obese persons develop insulin resistance because of this 24-hour fat 'spillage' effect. The link between obesity and diabetes is so strong, that it is commonly referred to as Diabesity. Also, not all dietary fats are created equal. As Dr Michael Greger, M.D. explains, saturated fats (such as palmitate found mostly in animal-sources like milk, meat and eggs) are notorious for inducing insulin resistance. In sharp contrast, fats (such as oleate found in plant-sources like nuts, avocados and olives) actually improve insulin sensitivity!

If the offending fats are removed from the diet, eating carbs (like mangoes) would no longer be a problem for diabetics. With insulin-resistance on the mend, insulin would regain its power to control any rise in blood sugar (even from a sugar-rich diet). Remember: High blood sugar is not the cause but rather the RESULT of diabetes. The cause is insulin-resistance, which is FAT-induced.

A Paradigm Shift in Healthcare Isn't it ironical then that the only nutritional advice doctors offer to type-2 diabetics is to steer clear of carbohydrates (which we know is not the cause of diabetes) but issue no warnings against dietary fat?

Perhaps it's because these recent findings were missing from the medical textbooks that our doctors read at medical school. Researchers first observed the mechanism through which 'ectopic fat accumulation' caused insulin resistance only after the emergence of cutting-edge MRI techniques in the 2000's. (Ectopic means in the wrong place, such as an 'ectopic pregnancy' where the fertilized egg lodges in the fallopian tube instead of the uterus). Fat is supposed to be deposited only within our fat cells and not in organs like the muscle, heart, pancreas or liver, or it can lead to disastrous health consequences.

Fortunately, as more physicians worldwide embrace these new findings, a paradigm shift is underway. While the 'why' is now evidently clear, the 'how' to reduce medications and 'how' to navigate the minefield of dietary choices - is where most patients still need help. Non-profit organizations such as the MacDougall Foundation and Physician's Committee for Responsible Medicine (in the US) and SHARAN (in India) have been at the forefront of this diet revolution - helping tens of thousands of people successfully reverse their diabetes through food alone.

Diabetes, like all lifestyle diseases, is a degenerative condition that will only worsen if not addressed. But the good news is that diabetes can be put in reverse gear in as little as 21-days! Pills and insulin injections are not the answer. A conscious shift in choosing what goes into your mouth is.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article above are those of the authors' and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of this publishing house. Unless otherwise noted, the author is writing in his/her personal capacity. They are not intended and should not be thought to represent official ideas, attitudes, or policies of any agency or institution.

Ruchira Dabas

The author is a certified plant-based nutritionist from Cornell University. She is a former Wall Street analyst and KPMG partner, now dedicated to disease reversal through food as a Director with SHARAN Health & Wellness.